Indian cuisine is renowned for its explosion of flavors, for the abundance of exotic condiments, and for the unique dishes that always provide the best blend of spices and sense-dulling tastes. In a sense, you can say that every Indian meal carries a story behind it, which is even more applicable when you think about the fact that India is a pretty huge country, also divided in plenty of states. From all the regions throughout the nation, we’ve plucked out some of the best examples of Indian traditional food.
#1 Rogan Josh
Essentially a very curry-like type of dish, rogan josh can be made with pretty much any time of meat you can think of, as the recipe indicates. Although the preparation itself might not seem like that much of a big deal, the truly fantastic bit about this curry is the overload of condiments and spices. You might need to read this recipe over a few times, however, since there are a lot of condiments that you may not have heard of.
#2 Biryani
The best part about most Indian foods is that there are little doubts about the ingredients used for the cooking. In other words, everything kind of rings of familiarity to us, except it’s improved by miles by the unique flavors. Biryani is an excellent choice for someone who wants to dive into Indian cuisine for the first time. After all, it’s pretty much just rice with saffron and assorted with high-protein meat such as chicken or mutton.
#3 Momos
Look, there’s even a really cute name to them! If you’re even slightly familiar to Eastern cuisine, the first thing that comes to your head might be dumplings. And, in a sense, you’re right. They’re a type of food branched from dinsum, a dish characteristic to North Eastern states by Nepal’s border.
#4 Butter Chicken
The overall characteristic of this dish is the fact that it’s full of light ingredients, but their perfect combination and blending of flavors is going to give you a true experience. Savor some spiced chicken dipped in a sauce prepared with butter and yogurt and you’ll get a bite out of India.
#5 Idli
The idlis look like perfect little snacks to enjoy while binging a marathon of your perfect TV show. Ditch the typical potato chips in favor of these unique round fermented batters of ground rice. Don’t forget your dip, this is the only way you’ll get to taste it properly.
#6 Nethili Varuval
Are you one of those people who requests a pizza “with everything” with the exception of anchovies? No? Good. This means that you hold no personal grudges against everyone’s most hated little fish. This South Indian traditional Indian dish consists of anchovies wrapped in a coat of crispy turmenic and red chilies.
#7 Kati Roll
For those of you who prefer enjoying the foreign delicacies sold by street vendors, kati rolls are very reminiscent of other delicious wraps found in other corners of the world – burritos and shish kebabs, for example. Kati rolls involve some kebabs, spices, eggs, and veggies all rolled up in a traditional type of flat bread.
#8 Pani Puri
These little snacks are perhaps a true representation of creativity in Indian cuisine. After all, in what other places have you gotten around to try something like this? Pani puri is represented by small, crispy breads with hollow places inside of them. They’re usually filled up by spiced water, tamarind paste, onion, chickpeas, and potatoes. We know, we know. That’s a lot of fill-up for something so small, isn’t it?
#9 Banana Chips
You heard that right, folks. Potatoes might have been the first to tread the territory, but they weren’t the last. Banana chips are really popular items among those wandering the streets of India and seeking to try out the delicacies available at street food joints. Think of them like some kind of local churros or, generally, any other type of snack that you can only find in one place and you’re absolutely willing to travel to the end of the world for. Yep, that’s them.
#10 Baingan Bharta
We’re not going to ignore those who have cut meat out of their diets, so here’s a reminder that there is also vegetarian Indian food. Baingan bharta is exactly this – an abundance of veggies which orbit around the star of the dish, the eggplant. They are all usually mashed together and cooked with some drizzles of spices and condiments on top. To fully enjoy them, grab a spoon of baingan bharta and a bite out of a flatbread.
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